Arvind Kejriwal has assured his supporters in the United States that he will not repeat the "mistake" of resigning if the Aam Aadmi Party returns to power in Delhi and dismissed the notion that the party is falling apart, saying the brakes and clutch of his AAP bus are working fine.
Kejriwal, who had a packed schedule in New York on Sunday, acknowledged to AAP volunteers and supporters during a meeting here that the party made a "wrong political assessment" of resigning 49 days after coming to power in Delhi in a stunning debut last year.
The 46-year-old Kejriwal assured volunteers that he will not repeat the mistake as he asked for support ahead of the elections due in Delhi.
"At that time we had thought that if we resign, there will be elections soon" and the party would come back stronger," the AAP founder told about 200 volunteers wearing the trademark white cap and holding banners and placards.
Kejriwal said the party had not thought that elections would not be conducted and that President's rule would be imposed in the city that would go on for about 11 months.
"This was a wrong political assessment; that was a mistake. This time we will not resign," he said.
Kejriwal also hit out at those saying that the party is falling apart since its leaders like Shazia Ilmi have left.
He said people have been saying that the party is falling apart because its leaders are leaving. He said people don't acknowledge that while only one person has left the party, thousands of volunteers have joined it.
"Efforts are being made to confuse people. But the brakes and clutch of the Aam Aadmi Party bus are working fine and the driver knows the way, have faith in the driver," he said, adding that people keep joining and leaving a company, party or an organisation for various reasons.
Kejriwal also took a potshot at those criticising him for travelling in business class or for wearing a branded sweater, saying that a lot of things that AAP does will be over-hyped.
"Why does he travel in business class, from where did he get an Adidas sweater," he said amid laughs from the crowd.
"BJP has no agenda today. We say will we will open 20 new colleges in Delhi and the BJP says it will not let girls wear jeans. We say we will put CCTV cameras across the city for the protection of women, BJP will say it will not let people celebrate Valentine's day. That is the difference between the two parties," he said.
When asked why he had resigned from his post of chief minister, Kejriwal said if the AAP had secured full majority in the last elections, "we would not have resigned at any cost.”
“We joined politics for systemic changes. We did a lot of good work in the 49 days. We provided good governance but we could not change the system," he said, adding that in order to bring systemic changes the party needed majority in the legislature.
Kejriwal said in hindsight, he feels the party should have consulted the people before taking the decision to resign.
